A rainy start to the week for the capital

New Delhi, May 26 (IANS) The midsummer rains came back to Delhi Monday morning resulting in clogged roads and traffic snarls, throwing the city out of gear. But it is not the monsoon yet, said the met department. The torrential rains led to temperatures dipping, and a very unusual sight in May - people in full sleeves and even in light jackets.

“I don’t remember the last time I wore a jacket in May in Delhi! With the rains and the wind, the weather has turned chilly and I had to pull out some light woollens I had neatly packed into the remotest corner of my wardrobe!” said Anita Singh, a school teacher in north Delhi.

For Anubhav Sahay, a bank employee, the main worry was the traffic.

“Everytime it rains, I get tense. That’s because I know that it will be yet another day of a long wait on the roads and never making it on time for work. To avoid that, I left home earlier than usual today but still got stuck in the traffic jam,” he said.

S.C. Bhan, director of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), said the change in the weather after a no-rain weekend was because of cyclonic conditions over west Rajasthan and adjoining areas of Pakistan.

“Today’s weather is because of the new cyclonic conditions which have developed over western Rajasthan and adjoining areas of Pakistan. But this is definitely not the monsoon; that is yet to hit the mainland,” Bhan told IANS.

The rainy spell cast its magic not just on Delhi, but also in Punjab, northern Rajasthan and Haryana in northern India.

“The cyclonic condition which has brought rains to Delhi today had travelled through Punjab, north Rajasthan and Haryana before coming here,” Bhan added.

“Not just Delhi, which has received a good 128.4 mm of rainfall this month - the highest since 2002 - but entire northern India has been receiving more rainfall than usual in the month of May.”